April Contest Voting

[iamafractal]

maze. not fun.

pmk.. fun

i liked the orange/blue door/button concept... very nice.

i was i guess a little relieved when you didn't make me take the cube all the way though, which i thought you'd do, since you could have...

the graphics was nice too... i really liked how nicely you dressed up the ceilings, for example, with all the fans, and interesting lighting... its nice that you paid attention to detail there.

[Cyclone]

"2 Part Maze" by thehermit2

Love the randomization aspect - you never really know what to expect. Unfortunately, this doesn't change two crucial facts:

One, a maze is a maze. Even with a massive number of possible configurations, it still requires no real thinking (with or without portals) beyond "Get from A to B by repeatedly doing C". It's a great time killer, because you can't just memorize it, but it doesn't really add anything to Portal that wasn't already there.

Two, I couldn't find any real logic as to how to get through the maze. Beyond the dot signs, I couldn't really tell where I was in relation to where I wanted to be. I completed the map three times (out of five attempts - the other two I got so hopelessly lost that I gave up), and each time had to resort to brute force tactics, trying every possible portal placement until I found the exit.

Overall, its a great idea, and a great map. It's a great way to kill ten minutes, but innovative? Not really.


pmk4 by mazk1985

This. Is. Awesome.

I'll get to the innovation in a bit; for the moment, I just want to say how cool this map is to play. There are multiple solutions to most puzzles, and a lot of creative, lateral thinking combined with sound logic is needed, in just the right ratios, to succeed. The new (at least, I think it's new) music sets a great tone, and the puzzles are some of the most inventive I've seen since my first run through the official maps.

Now, the innovation. The colored doors actually add a great deal to the game play. Just as any real innovation does, they added a lot to the gameplay without seeming like a gimmick. You introduced them at just the right pace, letting us see how they worked in the first chamber, and then giving us a series of increasingly complex challenges as the map progressed. Awesome.

Just two little problems: first, the rocket turret. It didn't seem to detect me properly; even at times when it should have targeted me, it just sat there, forcing me to find an alternate solution. Granted, it didn't cause me too many problems - your map is open ended enough that I was able to work around it - but still, it's annoying. Second, even though you have two chambers (elevator = new chamber, right?), the second lacks a welcome sign. Nothing much, but they're a nice touch.

You've got my vote; now where's PMK 5?

[mazk1985]

Thank you for all the comments. I wouldn't be making maps for this great game if it wasn't for this fair and knowledgable community.

Cyclone wrote:

first, the rocket turret. It didn't seem to detect me properly; even at times when it should have targeted me, it just sat there, forcing me to find an alternate solution.

Yeah I did notice this problem but I didn't fix it cos the deadline was approaching. Does it only happen when your on the other side of a piece of glass cos I placed invisible panels over the glass to detect damage (a func_button) and they have nodraw on them. I did this because when I was experimenting with the turret the glass wouldn't always break but this way they did.

Cyclone wrote:

Second, even though you have two chambers (elevator = new chamber, right?), the second lacks a welcome sign. Nothing much, but they're a nice touch.

I didn't think of this cos the whole map is ment to be one chamber but your right the elevators are there to split up the chambers and a sign should be there.

I'll fix both these problems when I get round to making the advanced and challenge versions.

Thanks for the help dude

[rellikpd]

mazk1985 wrote:

...when I get round to making the advanced and challenge versions.

i was hoping that was to come.

[Cyclone]

Yes, the rocket turret is blocked completely by glass panels - it can't see the player at all until you go in front of them. However, it also happens sometimes when you're on the other side of the hole in the wall. I could get it to aim through the hole with a bit of effort, but it didn't always fire. However, I think that may be the AI rather than a problem with the map.

Another quick note about PMK 4: in the room with the rocket turret, you can portal bump into the observation room. Just shoot one portal on the wall perpendicular to the observation glass, then aim around the left part of the portal until your reticle indicates that you can place a portal there. Fire, and the second portal should wind up inside the observation room.

From there, one can take the chairs out, and use them to jam up the doors, creating all sorts of havoc. It might be fun to leave in the regular version (for the eventual least portal / least step challenges), but for the advanced version, you should fix that. Just put the chairs lengthwise between one color of doors, then press the button, and boom, you have both sets of doors open at once.

[msleeper]

Congrats to mazk1985 for winning this month's contest! Check your PMs for details on the prizes.